WHAT MOTIVATES ME

Yesterday a friend asked me how I stay motivated during an 11 month training season. Honestly, it is not easy. July and August are always the hardest months for me. It is always so hot and humid… It seems like you do not need to exert much effort to feel spent. You sweat just by walking outdoors. It is depressing to see your times slow down as the weather heats up. If you are not careful you get caught up in the numbers and start to think your fitness is declining. A lot of training and racing triathlons is mental. Your body can do way more than you think it can. When training and racing for IM races or Ultras you often find yourself thinking negative thoughts and wanting to give up or quit the workout early.

Training for the Ultra tri has been exceptionally hard during the past month. When you have a 5-6 hour run or a 7-8 hour ride in Florida there is not a good time to do it. If you run in the evening you are dealing with 80-100% humidity and 80+ degree temperatures. If you run in the early AM hours you have 90-100% humidity and mid to upper 70s for the temperatures. Doing the workout in the evening or early AM hours also takes a toll on the body as you are doing the workout in the dark and when your internal clock says you should be sleeping… If you chose to sleep a normal schedule and start your run around 7:00 AM you end up running in 80% humidity and temperatures end up in the 90s before you can complete the workout.

On to what keeps me going… My family has been wonderful. When my workouts cross into “normal” people hours (when the family is awake) they will run with me, get me water bottles, cheer me on, or encourage me to keep going when I am ready to give up. I have some friends who will do part of my long ride with me or on occasion do part of my long run with me. I have a swimming partner for some of my swim workouts. I am constantly thinking about the fundraising effort and how people with MS do not have a choice to quit or to make the pain stop. I keep thinking that my suffering is a choice, that my pain is temporary and that I can choose not to do the race or choose to quit a workout early. All of that is what keeps me motivated…